In a multi-protocol label switching (MPLS) network, when an ingress point sends packets to a destination point, the ingress point classifies the received packets into a forwarding equivalence class according to types of the packets, and sends the received packets to the destination point through a traffic engineering tunnel (TE Tunnel) corresponding to the forwarding equivalence class, where a path of transmitting the packets through the TE Tunnel is called an LSP. For example, referring to FIG. 1, an ingress point RT1 transmits packets to a destination point RT5 through RT1-RT2-RT4-RT5. In order to ensure quality of service (QoS) of the MPLS network, an FRR technology is introduced, which protects local links and points in a primary LSP configured to transmit packets by establishing a bypass LSP. Referring to FIG. 1, RT1-RT2-RT4-RT5 is the primary LSP, and RT2-RT3-RT4 is the bypass LSP. When the primary LSP fails, a point of local repair (PLR) switches the packets of the primary LSP to the bypass LSP for transmission.
After the path switching, the PLR needs to send messages carrying path refreshing information to an ingress point and a merge point (MP) in a time of holding a path refreshing state. Referring to FIG. 1, RT2 is the PLR, RT1 is the ingress point, and RT4 is the MP. After the path switching, the PLR needs to send a refreshing message corresponding to each LSP, and as a great number of LSPs are borne on the links of the primary LSP, the PLR needs to send a great number of refreshing messages. In a sending method in the prior art, a preset number of refreshing messages are sent each time. However, the inventor found that the sending method also has a problem that the PLR may fail to send all the messages in the time of holding the path refreshing state, so that the ingress point and the MP cannot establish an LSP in time.